In this new quarantine rhythm of life, travel has been the last thing on my mind. I don’t dream of driving to a restaurant with friends. But has the pandemic changed how I pray? Is the movement of the Gospel still in my prayers?
At the end of 2020, I virtually attended CROSS CON, a missions conference for 18-25 year olds. The conference made me realize that many Christians might view overseas missions, or evangelism in general, as a low item on the priority list.
The theme was the Lord’s Prayer, and the speakers emphasized that the underlying current of the prayer is in the beginning where Christ models, “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your Name” (Matthew 6:9). The rest of the prayer supports this desire of cherishing God, and by extension, following His commandments, which includes his command to “make disciples of all nations.”
But for most of us, we live our lives largely unaware of the ongoing crisis that more than 40% of the world’s people groups remain 100% spiritually unreached.
We all know that not everyone is called to go in the form of overseas missions, but does that mean exemption from caring about the lost? I know I’ve definitely neglected lifting up these people to God, who is their Creator as much as He is mine.
Prayer is an essential activity for believers because we know salvation is an enduring aspiration of God’s for all people (1 Timothy 2:1-6). I have often used the reason of wanting to pray more specifically as an excuse to avoid praying for the lost. Praying for individuals and specific groups is a good thing, but not if it is warped to limit my love for the lost. If we are hallowing God’s name, we should be praying even for people we do not know because we should take bigger issue with the fact that they do not know Christ.
Whether it plays out as overseas missions or not, the Gospel must be the propeller of our lives.
During the past year, I have found prayer to be an appeal to God, a lifeline for myself, and a fellowship with others.
But we must remember that praying through the Gospel is not only assurance for our sanity and strength for our humility, it is also renewal for our world. It is a gift to pray and plead with God for the nations and our own hearts, that we might grieve for the people near and far in sin without a Savior.
America’s current climate has churches divided and believers attacked from all angles. It’s easy to succumb to condemnation, hopelessness, bitterness, flippancy – maybe all of the above- towards our circumstances, fellow Americans, and even towards fellow believers. But we all need prayer, and we all can give it.
As citizens of heaven, we of all people should know that nobody is qualified to be reconciled with God (Romans 3:23). Because of Christ and the Gospel, we have a secure hope to be shared. I wholeheartedly agree that building one another up within the local church and witnessing to those in our quarantine circles are important and God-glorifying. But let us not allow the people left in spiritual darkness wander from our prayers. We do not need to know them to petition expectantly for their salvation.
Despite the ongoing pandemic, we must not abandon our calling to treasure and share the Gospel. Praying that God gives us hearts of compassion for our neighbors and the lost. Pray that we turn from our habits of anger, anxiety, and apathy as we follow Christ daily. Let this same recognition of the gospel move us as it moved Christ to weep for and serve the lost in obedience to God. Let us faithfully pray without ceasing, that all might taste and see God’s goodness.